Advice – Wetsuits & BA

Its that time of year when people buy paddleboards – I am one of those people.

Planning on using for fun when camping in the likes of the Lakes and Scotland – so the North

Any recommendations for a wet suit and what features I should be looking for? I know they come in different thicknesses but for my needs, it’ll propbably get used between March/October so something general and budget friendly

Also a buoyancy aid – think I’d probably prefer a proper one rather than the CO2 style belt ones

Thanks

Any recommendations for a wet suit and what features I should be looking for?

IMO, fit above all else in a wetsuit. Anything from a known manufacturer should be good. Don’t forget to budget a set of wetsuit boots. I would buy one with long arms and legs, and a collar, they are warmer. That said I have a ‘long john’ which has no arms, looks freaky, but I add a paddle cagoule/dry top as I canoe and find this works for me when rotating.
Decathlon or local canoe shop is best bet.

Also a buoyancy aid – think I’d probably prefer a proper one rather than the CO2 style belt ones

The self-inflating ones are lifejackets, not designed to swim in and will cost a reset if you fall in.
Again, I would head for a known brand from Decathlon or local canoe shop, for a slim body hugging one. You can get some with lots of fancy pockets etc, aimed at touring or white water canoeing, but the pockets get in the way when getting back on a board or boat. They last well with good storage – some of ours are 10 years old and still float / are not failing (I know how to float test them).

Whereabouts are you?
Might be able to recommend a paddling shop.

Personally I would not wear a wetsuit in the summer, I’d get far too hot paddling. I have yet to fall off a paddleboard, they are fairly stable. But in March I might wear one!

As above, unless you are planning on falling in you will find a wetsuit will cook you. I tend to wear neoprene trousers and a rashie with a windproof of it is breezy. I tried a wetsuit on one paddle and it was a chilly day. Ended up jumping in as i was roasting

I regularly fall off all sorts of boards all year round and in different countries too, so I have quite a selection of wetsuits.
I usually have to adapt mine because I hate water coming in down the neck and these days most suits tend to have a very low cut collar which leaves a gap when you lean your head forwards.
I’d rather be too warm than too cold as i can always take a dip to cool down.
A smoothskin suit will be warmer out of the water as the moisture falls straight off so you don’t get the evaporation effect. However this makes them less durable.

I have some wetsuit legs which are great for paddle boarding and kayaking. I’ve also got a full suit from Lomo which I use for swimming but may be tempted to wear on the paddle board if I venture out in the next few weeks.

Lol. I have a latex allergy among many others. I wore my new 3mm/4mm full length wetsuit paddleboarding for 1 1/2 hours one summer evening, didn’t fall in once.

Omg, when I peeled it off it looked like I had been cleaning the roof at Chernobyl. I was fully glowing red with full on hi especially from the neck down. My skin took over a week, and a full shed, to calm down.

I gave the wetsuit a good wash and haven’t has such a reaction since, although now I deliberately jump in every 15 mind or so so there is some “throughput”.

Adversity to a wetsuit when paddle boarding also depends if your a Fairweather paddler and/or only paddle close to the shore/entry and exit points.

Doing a point to point or some grim /changeable weather I’ve been glad of mine more than a few times. If I’ve been too warm or it starts to rub I just jump in. Fwiw I use a zone 3 Tri suit

If I’m just paddling round my local loch of a warm summers evening where I can stand up nearly anywhere then it’s boardshorts/rash vest and BA ….

The amount of people I see without BA…..

Don’t you jump in every 15 minutes anyway to wrestle those trouts?

I’ve just done my first ever attempt at SUP boarding today. Once I was stood up I was fine but standing up was tricky must have fallen in 2 dozen times as it was quite choppy. We are on a shallow lake near Biarritz so the water must be about 15-17C. I’m using farmer Johns and a neoprene bodied rash vest from Decathlon and i was absolutely fine, also wore neoprene river shoes. Hopefully I’ll improve I’m heading to lakes in May for a week of open water swimming, SUP boarding and MTBing

We are on a shallow lake near Biarritz so the water must be about 15-17C

Not so humblebrag… 😆😎

We are on a shallow lake near Biarritz so the water must be about 15-17C

Come back to us when you’re on the Manchester ship Canal in February yeah? 😂

Cheers all :)

I had wondered if a full on wet suit might be a bit overkill- it’ll be more playing about on Coniston for a day rather than any sort of offshore touring…for now!

Kayak – I’m in Chorley if you know anywhere?

Leaning towards some sort of neoprene pants and rash top from what has been said above

I’m one of these ‘enthusiasts’ too. Paddleboard check.
Got a Billabong 5/4 wetsuit as I run cold and fell in a lot on my sup lesson. First run out with my own board was a fortnight ago, truly baltic, never fell in though. Got wet getting on. West coast Scotland.

Sportspursuit had a few buoyancy aids on offer. Got a Coolsurf one. Front zip, which is better for my female shape imo.

I use a nookie long sleaved Neoprene vest with wetsuit shorts, which I wear a lot, cold wind and I put a 2/3mm full wetsuit on (currently O’Neill). As said above I’d rather be a bit over warm with the option to take a dip to cool off than cold.
That’s for paddling in Yorkshire Dales so eqiiv to Coniston.

+1 for Billabong wetsuits. Very good range of sizes to get a good fit.
If you’re planning to stay on inshore waters, then consider an impact vest as they’re less bulky. But if you’re planning on going on the sea, then get a proper life vest, a waterproof pouch for your phone and let the RNLI know where you’re going 😉

@kayak23 I have been swimming in Salford keys this winter if that counts. Seen a few folk paddle boarding here in just t shirt and shorts but the lake doesn’t appear to be more than 1.5 meters deep and as I said pretty warm.

I’m only using the neoprene here to trial it out as I’m learning and the lakes in May can be pretty cold. I swam a couple of widths if Crummock in May a few tears back and it was about 9c my guide who was in a swimming costume was blue when we got out.

For me a key factor is how close are you to somewhere properly warm?
I kayak during the winter in a 3mm (aka summer weight) longjohn wetsuit with a light fleece, often short sleeved depending on whats clean, and cag when I am at lee valley.
However thats because I know I can be inside in a heating changing/shower room in about 5 minutes if I take a swim. If I didnt have that safeguard then its drysuit/thermals time.

During the summer I switch to shorts and shorty cag + fleece/rash vest=>short sleeved fleece=>rash vest as it warms up but it is somewhat dependant on the location. A deep lake takes time to warm up so you are at risk early on but the flip side is it will often be warm enough air temperature to be fine.
October can get a bit interesting temperature wise though.
Paddle boarding you are going to be more vulnerable to windchill I think so you would need to consider that if you get wet.

Regarding sizing – I seem to be toward the bottom end of the weight for a medium, but am slightly taller than the max size for a medium. Conversely, I’m below the minimum weight for the medium tall, and at the bottom of the size range for a medium tall….which would you normally go for?

I would go for a two piece outfit. I currently have Peak UK 3/4 and a neoprene top. I can then wear either or both. Combine with rash vest/ shorts/ cag and that will cover all conditions ( and you can wee when you want! ).

Fair weather paddle boarder here, and pretty much always with the kids in a local lake so we tend to spend as much time in the water as out of it. I have one of these, it’s thin enough that you don’t cook, warm enough for spring/summer (I run warm anyway), and flexible enough that you don’t notice it, especially useful for when climbing back onto the board repeatedly.

I have one of these buoyancy aids. Pockets are useful for stashing car keys and ice cream money, I went for a kayaking one as they are less intrusive when paddling and I occasionally take a kayak out for towing the kids on their boards.

Seen a few folk paddle boarding here in just t shirt and shorts but the lake doesn’t appear to be more than 1.5 meters deep and as I said pretty warm.

We’ve already seen a paddle boarder in Swansea Bay this week with board shorts and no top. Swansea Bay isn’t as warm as Biarritz!

Indeed, paddle boarders do seem susceptible to dress for the ‘gram, not prevailing local conditions.

We met a couple last year on Loch Lomond – he was shivering uncontrollably after a dip. Both basically in swimsuits. We sent them/watched them get to to the larger island nearby, with a line of powerboats and people on the shore – they refused our spare fleece top & trousers we carry in the canoe.